Wendy Strain

An Outstanding Islander

Climate Change Prevention

University alumnus Wendy Strain was convinced that no one in Corpus Christi was as passionate as she was about finding solutions to ease the climate crisis, until she met face-to-face with Al Gore, Former Vice President and Chairman of the Climate Reality Project.

Strain was accepted to participate in Gore’s Climate Reality Project Leadership Corps Training held in summer 2012 in San Francisco, Calif. The purpose of the Climate Project is to teach people how to present the effects of climate changes, to provide scientific evidence of its human causes, and inform others how to prevent it.

Strain, who recently graduated with her Master of Arts Degree in English through the College of Liberal Arts, represented the Island University during the training, thanks to some help from friends in the English Department. At the training, she networked with others from across the nation and 58 counties. Her areas of concern included changing weather patterns, global warming, and melting ice caps.

“I had lunch and dinner with people from South Africa, Australia, and India,” said Strain, an Adjunct Instructor of English. “They shared some amazing stories with me. It was life-changing to learn about other attitudes from across the world. ”

Strain also enlightened them about the University’s contribution to climate change prevention, including the addition of 11 new vertical-axis wind turbines, the largest installation of its kind in the nation, to increase renewable energy. She also shared information about the world-class research being conducted in the Gulf of Mexico through the Harte Research Institute.

“I was so inspired to talk with others so dedicated to climate change prevention,” said Strain. “It was definitely interesting to meet people from right here in Texas who believed in the same cause.”

Since participating in the Climate Project, Strain has begun preparing two presentations on the prevention of climate change and the scientific data on its causes. She hopes to soon share this information on campus and in her community.

Strain has also lent her talents to the University’s Coastal Bend Business Innovation Center, producing climate-oriented Web content, and an environmental blog. She is also an editor of electronic romance novels.